Director/Senior Director of Integrated Marketing & Communications

Location: Hickory, North Carolina

The Director/Senior Director of Integrated Marketing and Communications is a senior member of Lenoir-Rhyne University's Office of Marketing and Communications, with primary responsibility for developing and executing integrated strategies that advance the university’s enrollment goals. Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Marketing and Communications, the director/senior director works across digital advertising, web, email, print, social media and other channels to build awareness, generate interest and move prospective students through the enrollment process.

This is both a strategic and hands-on role. The director/senior director must be able to develop strategy, exercise sound judgment, and independently lead complex projects while also producing high-quality work. The successful candidate will be an exceptional writer and editor with broad creative and digital fluency and the ability to write copy, update web content, create or modify print and digital assets, support digital advertising and edit short-form multimedia.

The director/senior director is not expected to be the university's primary specialist in every discipline. Rather, the role requires demonstrated depth in several core areas, broad professional fluency across marketing and communications, and the judgment to know when to execute work directly and when to engage specialized colleagues or partners. The ideal candidate is proactive, politically and organizationally astute, highly collaborative and comfortable moving work forward with a high degree of independence.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• None

Essential Accountabilities

Enrollment, Advancement and Institutional Marketing

• Partner with Admission and Enrollment Management to develop integrated recruitment marketing supporting undergraduate, transfer, graduate and online enrollment.
• Lead development of admission marketing collateral and campaigns across print, web, email, advertising, social media, video and other channels, including writing and editing recruitment copy.
• Develop audience-specific messaging across the recruitment funnel and use enrollment data, audience insights and campaign performance to improve effectiveness.
• Partner with Advancement on marketing and communications supporting fundraising, alumni engagement, donor communications, campaigns and institutional priorities.
• Support reputation-building and integrated storytelling that increase awareness of Lenoir-Rhyne's academic programs, people, accomplishments and community impact.

Integrated Strategy, Leadership and Project Ownership

• Partner with the Associate Vice President to develop and execute integrated marketing and communications strategies supporting university priorities, enrollment goals, brand awareness, reputation and engagement.
• Own assigned initiatives from strategy and concept development through execution, measurement and optimization, engaging the Associate Vice President at appropriate decision points.
• Translate institutional goals, audience needs and market insights into actionable plans, campaigns, messaging and creative deliverables.
• Serve as a strategic resource to university leaders and campus partners; anticipate needs, establish priorities and recommend effective approaches.
• Manage multiple complex projects, timelines, budgets, vendors and production processes while identifying opportunities to improve workflow and efficiency.

Brand, Creative, Writing and Content

• Support stewardship and implementation of the Lenoir-Rhyne brand, translating brand strategy, visual identity and messaging consistently across platforms.
• Develop creative concepts and provide strategic and creative direction for print, digital, advertising, photography, video and other marketing projects.
• Serve as a senior writer, copywriter and editor, producing polished web copy, news and feature stories, admission and advancement communications, advertising, email, social media, scripts, publications and presentations.
• Translate complex academic, institutional and strategic information into clear, compelling and audience-appropriate communications.
• Create, modify or adapt professional print and digital assets using Adobe Creative Cloud when needed, while collaborating effectively with designers, photographers, videographers, writers, agencies and other specialists.
• Review work for brand consistency, messaging effectiveness, editorial and creative quality, accuracy and audience relevance.

Web, Digital and Multimedia

• Lead strategy and optimization of recruitment-related web content and landing pages; write, edit and publish content in the content management system as needed.
• Apply best practices in web writing, UX, accessibility, SEO, GEO, conversion optimization and content governance.
• Plan, execute and optimize digital marketing across paid search, paid social, display, programmatic, streaming and emerging channels, working directly in platforms or with agency partners as appropriate.
• Develop social media copy and creative content and create or edit short-form video and multimedia content when needed.
• Use web, digital, campaign and engagement analytics to evaluate performance, inform decisions and recommend improvements.

Collaboration and University Partnership

• Serve as the primary Marketing and Communications liaison to Enrollment Management, maintaining regular coordination with enrollment leadership and staff to align marketing activities with recruitment priorities, timelines and goals.
• Build trusted relationships with university leaders, faculty, staff and other stakeholders and represent Marketing and Communications effectively on cross-functional initiatives.
• Navigate competing priorities and differing perspectives with diplomacy, political awareness, sound judgment, and a solutions-oriented approach.
• Help campus partners distinguish strategic priorities from tactical requests and recommend solutions that advance broader university goals.
• Maintain confidentiality and exercise discretion when working with sensitive institutional information.

Required Skills/Abilities

• Bachelor's degree in marketing, communications, public relations, journalism, English, business or a related field.
• At least seven years of progressively responsible integrated marketing and communications experience, with demonstrated work across multiple disciplines such as content, creative, digital, web, enrollment marketing and institutional communications.
• Demonstrated ability to develop strategy and independently execute high-quality work across multiple channels.
• Exceptional writing, copywriting, editing and storytelling skills, with the ability to adapt messaging for different audiences and purposes.
• Experience developing print and digital marketing materials and strong working proficiency with Adobe Creative Cloud, particularly InDesign, Photoshop and Acrobat.
• Experience developing and managing web content in a content management system, with working knowledge of UX, SEO, accessibility and analytics.
• Experience with social and digital platforms and demonstrated ability to direct creative work while also executing hands-on work when needed.
• Strong project leadership, strategic judgment, creative problem-solving, organizational awareness and ability to manage multiple complex priorities independently.
• Strong interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to build relationships and collaborate across organizational boundaries.
• Portfolio or work samples demonstrating strong writing, editing and hands-on marketing and communications work across multiple channels.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in marketing, communications, business, higher education or a related field.
• Experience with admission/enrollment marketing or recruitment marketing.
• Experience with Slate or another enrollment CRM, including automated communications and audience segmentation.
• Experience with student recruitment funnels, lead generation and conversion optimization.
• Experience developing marketing campaigns for specific academic programs or student audiences.
• Experience with CRM-connected communications, digital advertising and analytics platforms.
• Working knowledge of Adobe Creative Cloud applications, including Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator and Premiere Pro or comparable video-editing tools.
• Experience managing agencies, vendors, print production partners and budgets.
• Familiarity with emerging AI-enabled marketing and communications tools and their appropriate use.
• Experience working directly with senior leaders and navigating complex stakeholder environments.

Success in the Role

Success will be measured by the director's ability to independently own significant portfolios and projects, produce high-quality work, build trusted campus relationships and create capacity for the Associate Vice President to focus on enterprise strategy, executive counsel, institutional reputation and long-range planning.

Work Arrangement

This position is in person on our Hickory campus.

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Position requirements in the role description outlined above indicate the minimum level of knowledge, skills, and/or abilities deemed necessary to perform the job competently. Role descriptions are an overview of the duties, responsibilities, and requirements of the position and are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list for the position. Employees may be required to perform other job-related assignments as requested and acquire new skills and responsibilities. Lenoir-Rhyne University reserves the right to modify, add, remove, or waive the responsibilities, duties, and skills required of the position.

About Lenoir-Rhyne University

Founded in 1891, Lenoir-Rhyne University is a private, comprehensive university dedicated to preparing students for meaningful lives and work through the cultivation of character, connection and faith. With a vision to be a leading professionally focused university in the Southeast, Lenoir-Rhyne prepares life-ready graduates through rigorous academics, hands-on learning and a deeply connected campus community.

Lenoir-Rhyne is ranked the No. 1 private university in Western North Carolina, No. 18 Best Value School in the South and No. 23 private university in the South by U.S. News & World Report. The university’s Can. Do. spirit reflects a belief in what students can become and what they can accomplish, empowering them to discover their potential, put knowledge into action and make a meaningful difference in their professions and communities.

Lenoir-Rhyne offers more than 70 undergraduate programs and 23 graduate degree programs and serves approximately 2,600 students. The university’s main campus is in Hickory, North Carolina, with a graduate center in Asheville, North Carolina. Rooted in the Lutheran intellectual tradition and welcoming people of all faiths and backgrounds, LR fosters a community grounded in excellence, integrity, care and curiosity. Learn more at lr.edu.

Non-Discrimination and Equal Opportunity Policy

Lenoir-Rhyne University is committed to providing a workplace and educational environment, as well as other benefits, programs, and activities that are free from discrimination, harassment and retaliation.

LR is committed to creating a safe campus environment for all members of the LR community, including, but not limited to, those who identify as transgender and gender non-conforming. To that end, LR does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex (including sex stereotypes and sex characteristics), ethnicity, national origin, physical or mental disability, age, marital status, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran or military status or any other characteristic or status protected by applicable law.

To ensure compliance with federal and state civil rights laws and regulations and to affirm its commitment to promoting the goals of fairness and equity in all aspects of the educational program, activity and employment, LR has developed internal policies and procedures that provide a prompt, fair and impartial process for those involved in an allegation of discrimination or harassment, and for allegations of retaliation.